Yankees' Anthony Rizzo Speaks Out About Astros Free Agency Rumor
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Anthony Rizzo is back with the Yankees for at least two more seasons, re-signing with the club on Tuesday.
For a moment earlier in the week, however, reports revealed that a certain rival had reached out to Rizzo's camp, showing interest while the first baseman was still a free agent.
The Astros, just a few weeks after eliminating New York from postseason contention and winning their second championship in the last six seasons, had made Rizzo their No. 1 free-agent target at first base, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Rizzo was asked about that rumor on Wednesday afternoon while he spoke to reporters for the first time since agreeing to his two-year, $34 million deal.
"I mean, every team that reaches out is definitely taken into consideration," Rizzo said. "I think as a player when teams reach out to you in this process, it just makes you feel good. I feel like in this game, you are told what you don't do really well at so in free agency when teams call, they praise you. So each team that has reached out, I really appreciated their words and I mean just from respect on their end, I don't really want to go too deep into it, but I just appreciate the teams that did reach out."
Rizzo added that he didn't have any face-to-face meetings with other teams during his brief dip into free agency.
"The interest that we gathered and talked to other teams about was enough interest for us if we didn't get a deal done [with the Yankees] to turn down the qualifying offer, thinking that we would be able to get a similar deal of stature that we got," Rizzo said.
Rizzo's new contract with New York includes a club option for 2025, a third season worth $17 million. At the very least, Rizzo will make $40 million from this deal. His buyout after the 2024 season is worth $6 million.
MORE:
- Anthony Rizzo Re-Signed Because He 'Loves Being a Yankee'
- Why the Yankees Were Wise to Re-Sign Anthony Rizzo
- Yankees' Hal Steinbrenner Ready to Spend to Retain Aaron Judge This Offseason
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